Since arriving at MIT in the fall of 2003, Francisco had noted a less than ideal grab-and-go food culture on campus. "Often people would feel disconnected from their choices," he said.

Working with Culture Lab, Francisco joined forces with Nick Senske, another graduate student in architecture. Together, they wanted to create a space on campus that encouraged seated, relaxed and social eating.

Senske, who has been studying Open Source, a design model based on community collaboration and participation, brought his technological research to the project, and developed a basic web infrastructure to facilitate community feedback and recipe submissions which will form the core of the menu.

"We want to tap into the diversity that is already at MIT," Francisco said, adding that he would like to see family recipes from around the globe become menu items.

Ultimately, Francisco said he would like to see MIT students who are well-rounded in their pursuits. "The question of food should be part of their lives in whatever field they find themselves," he said.